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Are You Scripturally Married? By Carrol R. Sutton If you are married, are you Scripturally married? By “Scripturally married,” I mean, is your marriage in harmony with the teaching of the Scriptures? In other words, does God approve of your marriage? Our appeal must always be to the Scriptures to learn what is Scriptural or what God approves of. If you have never been married you have a right to be married (see Heb. 13:4; 1 Cor. 7:2). If your wife dies you have a right to be married (see Rom. 7:2-3; 1 Cor. 7:39). If your wife commits fornication you have a right to put her away (i.e., divorce her) for that reason. You then would have a right to marry another who has the right to marry. There is no Scriptural evidence that fornication puts asunder what God hath joined together. When a person commits fornication the spouse has a Scriptural right to put away (divorce) that guilty person. Notice the following passages. --Luke 16:18 - “Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.” NOTE: A man who puts away (divorces) his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery. The man who marries a put away (divorced) woman is also guilty of adultery. This is God’s law! --Mark 10:11-12 - “Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another committeth adultery against her. And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery.” This is God’s law and applies to women as well as men. There is one exception to God’s law as stated in the above passages. It is found in Mt. 19:9 where Jesus said: “And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.” NOTE: Jesus gives only one reason that a husband may put away (divorce) his wife. If she commits fornication the husband has a right to put her away (divorce her) for that reason and that alone. FURTHER NOTE: There is no Scriptural evidence that he can some way skirt around the civil laws for divorce and later put away (divorce) her mentally and be free to marry again after she has already divorced (put away) him. The Scriptures never mention the idea of a person mentally divorcing a spouse after that person has been put away (divorce) by his or her spouse. The “mental divorce” argument has been born of emotions and brought forth by wishful thinking. If one can ignore civil laws for divorce and mentally divorce his wife and marry another with God’s approval, why can’t a person ignore civil laws regarding marriage and mentally marry someone and be husband and wife with God’s approval? This would allow a man and woman in this country to mentally agree to be married. They could ignore civil laws regarding marriage and they could simply begin living together as husband and wife with God’s approval. Whether one is marrying or divorcing, it is essential that one comply with civil laws according to the teachings in Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Pet. 2:13-14 & Titus 3:1. Are you Scripturally married? If not, please get out of your adulterous situation!
The Instructor,
March, 2003; Volume 40, Number 3 |
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